Criminal charges against seven men accused of stealing an 800-pound stuffed bear from a Uniontown restaurant were dismissed today when the men paid $8,722 in restitution.

The men were to have a preliminary hearing before District Judge Michael Metros in Uniontown this afternoon, but the hearings were canceled when each of the defendants appeared with more than $1,000 cash to pay restitution.

They were accused of taking the bear in September from Sam’s Restaurant and the Eagle’s Nest bar on Morgantown Street.

Owner John El-Ayazra agreed not to press charges when the men made restitution, acording to J.W. Eddy, assistant district attorney.

Doug Rhodes, 71, of Uniontown, shot the 8-foot-tall bear 10 years ago while hunting in Far East Russia. Rhodes had the bear mounted and shipped to El-Ayazra as a gift. The bear stood watch on an outdoor, upstairs deck of the Eagle’s Nest bar until early Sept. 18, when a group of men were spotted heaving it over a railing and down a stairway.

The bear, valued at $10,000, had its upper snout broken off, its lower jaw damaged, its claws removed, and one of its arms torn.

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